Challenges in research approaches to the 'just energy transition' in legal studies and other branches of the social sciences.

This article critically examines the concept of the "just energy transition" (JET), highlighting its increasing use in climate and energy scholarship alongside significant challenges related to its semantic ambiguity and lack of precise definition. It argues that this imprecision hinders the development of testable theories and cumulative knowledge in legal studies and social sciences, contrasting this with the clearer technical terminology found in natural sciences like energy physics. The study also compares JET with the related but more developed field of Energy Justice (EJ), noting that EJ similarly suffers from definitional inconsistencies and terminological confusion, which can complicate its application and risk further obscuring JET research if not carefully managed. Ultimately, the article calls for greater methodological rigor and clarity in defining JET to enable more coherent and empirically grounded scholarship in energy governance.